Europe

Europe takes in only a small proportion of the world's refugees yet when you consider the dog whistle politics and lack of human decency towards the men, women and children desperately trying to reach its shores, you'd think it was being wiped out by an alien species.

According to the late French philosopher Gilles Deleuze, there is nothing more unsettling than the continued movement of something that seems fixed.

US increases air strikes on Syrian town of Kobani; Hong Kong government and protest leaders to meet; Australian PM Tony Abbott seeks to legislate against 'preachers of hate'; Ebola unavoidable in Europe; Canadian military to head to Iraq; and more

Developed countries like New Zealand can learn from Cyprus; an economy overly dependent on its financial sector rather than the real economy, is vulnerable. And the rule of law exist in our minds as much as it does in laws, courts and banks. It’s like a handshake. If one sides looses faith in the deal, doesn’t matter how many law enforcers you have, the system collapses.

Does anyone really understand what the hell just happened in Cyprus?

Disaster appears to have been avoided today with a ‘Plan B’ agreed. The draft deal, cobbled together over the weekend would see bank deposits under $100,000 untouched but the country’s second biggest bank close. It still has to be approved by euro zone finance ministers.